


They make it look so easy

by morebooksplease



Category: Anne of Green Gables (TV 1985) & Related Fandoms, Anne of Green Gables - L. M. Montgomery, Anne with an E (TV)
Genre: Anne - Freeform, Anne and Gilbert, Cute, Getting Together, I really need to learn how to tag, Shirbert, marillas pov, subtle but its there
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-05
Updated: 2019-02-05
Packaged: 2019-10-23 02:21:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17674580
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/morebooksplease/pseuds/morebooksplease
Summary: “They seem to be growing closer, don’t you think?” piped Matthew, coming in from the back door.“Yes, the poor boy seems to be quite taken with our Anne.” Marilla responded with an amused voice as she finished setting the table.“Should I be getting worried?” inquired the man, his normally passive face growing concerned “She’s a bit too young to be dealing with young men, is she not?”----Marilla's view on Anne and Gilbert's friendship





	They make it look so easy

**Author's Note:**

> It's late, i'm sorry

“Marilla I’m telling you, those women have nothing but unpleasant things to say about our dear Anne,” parroted none other but Rachel Lynde “I overheard them myself!”

“Oh but whatever for?” questioned Marilla “She’s been on her best behavior recently,”

Rachel set her knitting needle back on the table as she reached for her cup of tea

“Well, there’s a rumor going around that the Blythe boy is sweet on our Anne,” She whispered as she set the cup back on the table “and I believe it, that boy is always hanging around her like a lost-”

“Rachel, please,” interrupted Marilla, her eyes growing exasperated “get back on the topic.”

“Ah, yes. It’s no secret that Gilbert is held in high esteem by everyone, they’re all simply jealous that he hasn’t shown interest in their younglings,” continued Rachel, her eyes rolling “They say Anne will ultimately ruin his career and reputation."

Marilla served herself another cup of tea, silently contemplating what to say next.

“It’s been years … she’s done nothing but prove herself time after time and yet…” she began, her voice quiet as she put her arms down on the table “many still don’t trust her, it’s saddening to see how ignorant people can be.”

Rachel moved her hand to rest on top of Marilla’s in a manner that she hoped would be conciliatory.

“Yes, I know,” replied Rachel calmly “but our Anne is resilient, as she would say, she’ll go on to do good things and no one will be able to speak such things of her ever again.” 

“I sure hope so-“

“Marilla! I’m back,” shouted Anne “Oh hello Rachel, how have you been since I’ve seen you last?”

“Quite well Anne-girl, thank you for asking,” replied Rachel pleasantly, hands moving to embrace Anne

Anne shot a broad and gorgeous smile at the elder. Anne had grown to be a sight for sore eyes over the past few years, with her hair not as vibrant as before but still unmistakably red. Perhaps most beautiful of all was her personality, she was intelligent and hopelessly optimistic at all times. It was no surprise, that with her brains and beauty, she’d caught a few of the local boy’s eyes. Alas, she still had people that underestimated her due to her origins as an orphan. Oh how ignorant were those people, to simply ignore Anne due to some preconceived prejudices and not get to know her for who she truly was.

“Marilla, I’ve been meaning to ask,” began Anne, hands grasping at her hair nervously “Mary and Sebastian are out of town for a few days … and I, well I wanted to invite Gilbert over for dinner.” 

Rachel held back the urge to smirk in Marilla’s direction, instead choosing to voice her opinion.

“Why Anne, that sounds awful romantical don’t you think?” she asked, voice teasing

“There’s absolutely nothing romantical about it!” spluttered Anne, as a rosy blush raised to her cheeks “I just couldn’t bear the thought of him eating dinner alone during such a nice day-“ 

“Enough with your blabbering, dear girl” interrupted Marilla, effectively cutting her off. “Don’t be silly, you know Gilbert is always invited in this house.”

“Oh thank you Marilla! I best go tell him now, I wouldn’t want him to starve,” exclaimed Anne airily while reaching for her coat “Please tell Matthew that I will be back shortly.”

“We will, Anne,” replied Rachel with an amused smile “you best get going.”

Anne didn’t need to be told twice, she sprinted out into the path after yelling a quick hello to Jerry.

“I have half a mind to stay and see how this all plays out,” mentions Rachel before getting up from her seat and straightening her skirt “Alas, my poor Thomas is probably in need of his tea by now. I’ll let myself out, oh and, good luck with the boy.” she concluded as she winked at Marilla.

Marilla muttered a soft goodbye in response, before cleaning up and moving to the kitchen to prepare dinner. Poor Matthew would be so surprised when he saw the Blythe boy seated at their table. That mattered not, because Marilla would never turn down someone in need, she was a woman of God after all. 

Marilla busied herself cooking dinner, she made sure to save some for Jerry to eat before heading home. Lord knew that poor boy needed to eat more. Ever since Bash had gifted her some spices, Marilla simply couldn’t get used to the bland food the used to eat on a regular basis. So she began experimenting more in her cooking, much to Anne’s delight, and found the results to be simply scrumptious. 

“Ms. Cuthbert?” 

“Jerry? I’m in the kitchen,” replied Marilla

“Matthew said you might be,” responded Jerry before coming into the kitchen “I just wanted to bid you adieu before I headed off.”

“Ah yes, before I forget, let me give you some food to take home,” said Marilla, while putting a serving in a bowl.

“Oh no, Ms. Cuthbert that is not necessary-”

“Nonsense, it’s my pleasure” she insisted, “Mathew paid your wage already, correct?”

“Yes Ms. Cuthbert, thank you for the delicious food,” replied Jerry, eyes glowing in delight as he looked at the food.

“Now you best get going, boy, before it gets dark,” Marilla muttered, ushering Jerry out of the kitchen

“Bonne nuit!” exclaimed Jerry before disappearing from sight.   
Marilla closed her eyes, enjoying the afternoon sun.  
"Would ya mind telling me why Anne is walking back with that Blythe Boy?” inquired Matthew, startling Marilla 

“Good heavens! You nearly scared the life out of me,” she replied before drying off her hands on her apron “Gilbert is staying for dinner, Mary and Bash are out of town and the neighborly thing to do was invite him to dinner.”

Matthews’s eyes narrowed as he stared at the two growing figures in the horizon.

“Well, I suppose so,” he replied, before sitting to scrape off his boots. 

Realizing their conversation was over; Marilla went back inside to finish setting the table knowing that Anne and Gilbert would be there soon. 

“They seem to be growing closer, don’t you think?” piped Matthew, coming in from the back door.

“Yes, the poor boy seems to be quite taken with our Anne.” Marilla responded with an amused voice as she finished setting the table.

“Should I be getting worried?” inquired the man, his normally passive face growing concerned “She’s a bit too young to be dealing with young men, is she not?”

“Goodness Matthew, she’s nearly nineteen,” she exclaimed “in my opinion, that’s a proper age to begin courting.”

“I suppose so,” muttered Matthew “I’m going to clean up a bit.” 

Marilla could already hear the footsteps and faint laughter nearing so she began to pile food onto the plates. This dinner was bound to be, well, unique. 

“Marilla!” exclaimed Anne once again as she entered the kitchen “I’m back and I’ve brought Gilbert with me!”

Said boy trailed in after her with a bashful grin on his place

“Good evening, Ms. Cuthbert,” he began with a polite smile on his face, “I do hope I’m not intruding.”

“Oh it’s quite alright, Gilbert,” responded Marilla “How has the happy couple been recently?”

“Ah, they’ve been well,” Gilbert responded smoothly, “They’ve been spending every waking moment together, they’re visiting Mary’s son right now.”

“Isn’t that so romantical?” added Anne, “To be able to spend your life with the one you love the most.”

Marilla, who was already used to Anne’s ramblings, proceeded to place the plates on the table and call for Matthew. When she turned back to the pair she found Gilbert staring at Anne intently as she talked, a small yet fond smile on his face. 

The women who talked about Anne were complete scoundrels; anyone with eyes could see that her dear Anne brought nothing but joy to Gilbert’s life. Anne had too good of a heart to ever endanger his career or reputation. 

“That’s quite enough, Anne” voiced Marilla, cutting off Anne’s ramblings as Matthew walked into the room.

“Oh, Matthew! How I’ve missed you today,” exclaimed Anne, moving to embrace him.

“and I you, my dear girl,” said Matthew, embracing her tightly “Now, let’s eat.”

The three of them sat in their usual spots at the table. Marilla watched with amusement as Gilbert tried to decide whether to sit next to Anne or herself. 

“Gilbert,” began Matthew awkwardly, as Gilbert finally sat next to Anne “how are your studies going?”

“Very well, thank you,” replied Gilbert as everyone else began eating

“Oh, it’s more than just very well,” added Anne, “Gil’s fixing to graduate at the top of our class, followed closely be me, mind you.”

“Anne, let’s be honest you will be the one to graduate at the top,” rebuked Gilbert, nudging her slightly before taking a bite of the stew.

“Marilla, this stew is simply amazing,” exclaimed Gilbert, his eyes widening “Have you been using the spices Bash recommended?”

“Oh yes she has!” replied Anne before Marilla was able to respond, “The results have been scrumptious, all the ingredients blend together so well.”

“Thank you, Gilbert,” interrupted Marilla, before shooting a look over at Anne

There was a lapse of silence, not an uncomfortable one, as they all ate. 

“So, Gilbert…” said Matthew “how’s the farming with Bash going?”

“He seems to finally be getting the point of it,” responded Gilbert, as he finished his plate “The other day Mary insisted on helping out and she seems to have a better understanding than Bash.”

“Mary … has been working in the fields with you?” asked Anne, he gaze moving towards Gilbert.

“Yes, she seems to enjoy working in the fields,” he replied, smile growing fond as he thought of his family.

Marilla already knew what was coming, she’d been around Anne long enough to be able to predict some of her ideas. 

“Why have I never been allowed to work in the fields?” she asked, face scrunching uncertainly.

“Of course you do,” responded Matthew with a confused face “you help Jerry out with his chores all the time.” 

“Yes, but I’ve never been able to prepare the ground for sowing or-,” began Anne.

“Well, I suppose you could help out more come spring time,” said Marilla.

Anne’s eyes practically shone and Matthew just turned to look at her with an inquisitive face, Gilbert on the other hand seemed far to occupied inhaling his food to add input. 

“Oh thank you!” she exclaimed, almost jumping out of her seat before remembering her manners.

Marilla simply offered her a smile in return; she never really learned how to respond to Anne’s affection.

Dinner continued on with pleasant conversations between the four. Marilla wanted to bring up the rumors Rachel had told her about but she wasn’t quite sure how to do it in a subtle way. Gilbert was a nice and respectable boy but Marilla couldn’t help resenting him a tad for being the cause of all those rumors, although it truly wasn’t his fault that those rumors began in the first place. 

“Well, I’m of to bed,” muttered Matthew, kissing Anne’s head as he passed to put his dishes in the kitchen. “Gilbert, would you like a ride home?”

“No, sir,” replied Gilbert with a grateful smile on his face, “Thank you for the offer.”

“Yes of course,” responded Matthew before murmuring goodnight. 

“Allow me to help you clean before I go,” insisted Gilbert, as he moved to get all the dishes from the table.

“Well, it’s Anne’s chore to wash up,” responded Marilla, surprised by the offer “But I suppose you could help her, if she doesn’t mind.”

“Oh no, that suits me perfectly well,” added Anne, smiling at Gilbert.

The two stood there, smiling at each other before Marilla interrupted.

“Well, I’m going to sit for a while,” 

Marilla settled near the fireplace, she was close enough to make sure there wasn’t any impropriety occurring but far enough to give them privacy. 

She supposed she was a bit too rash to push the blame on Gilbert. After all, it wasn’t his fault that people would use any excuse to speak unpleasantly of Anne. Marilla could faintly hear the conversations between the pair and it wasn’t long before it lulled her to sleep

Marilla awoke to the sound of Anne’s voice; she feigned sleep just so she could overhear the conversation between the two.

“Oh, she’s asleep,” Anne whispered.

“Do you want me to carry her to bed?” asked Gilbert hesitantly.

“No, I’ll make sure she gets to bed soon.” Anne added airily

There was a slight, tense lull in the conversation. Marilla could basically feel Gilbert’s hesitance to voice his thought.

“Anne… I heard something today,” he said, Marilla faintly registered the sound of both of them sitting down. “A rumor going around town…”

Ah, so they were finally addressing it.

“Whatever about,” wondered Anne, voice rising in pitch as it usually does when she’s lying 

“Anne, please,” pleaded Gilbert, Marilla heard him let out a sigh “don’t act dull, it doesn’t suit you. We both know that I’m talking about the rumor that- well, that mentions that I’m interested in you and--,”

“Don’t worry Gil, I know it’s not true.” Anne whispered quietly, interrupting his next sentence. 

“No, Anne that’s-, that’s not it,” Gilbert stood up, his hand running through his hair. “Anne, I’m truthfully very much interested in you.”

Marilla struggled to hold in her gasp, slightly opening an eye so she could see what was going on. Anne, however, gasped loudly. Those two were truly meant for each other, any other boy wouldn’t have been so bold to admit they’re feelings aloud like that. Anne had truly met her match when it came to Gilbert.

“wha-, you what?” shrieked Anne, as Gilbert shushed her.

“You heard me, Anne. I’m interested in you,” he repeated gently, “But, that’s not the part that I wanted to discuss. First of all, I wanted to apologize for all those rumors being spread and I just wanted to let you know, that you in no way could ever ruin my reputation. If anything you make me a better person, even if you won’t have me as something else … well, I would very much like it if we remained friends. So I just thought that you should know… that.”

Oh, Marilla fully approved of Gilbert now. First the sweet boy had apologized for something that, Marilla now realized, wasn’t his fault but he also made sure to tell her that it wasn’t true. Providence itself could not have chosen a better pair. 

“I- uh, thank you,” said Anne, subtly stumbling over her words, “and just so you know … having you as an equal, would uh-, suit me just fine.” 

Marilla watched amusedly as both Anne and Gilbert turned bright red at that comment.

“I’ll see you tomorrow then,” Gilbert murmured before grabbing his coat.

They both walked to the door but neither made a move to open it. 

“Would you mind … if I walked you home tomorrow?” he asked, fingers fidgeting not looking Anne in the eyes.

“I’d like that very much,” responded Anne as he finally met her eye.

“I better go,” he mumbled as he gave her a shy smile.

“Good night, Gil,” 

“Good night, Anne”

The two stood there for another while until Anne shut the door. Marilla watched as Anne rested her back against the closed door and let out a lovesick sigh.

Marilla pretended to stir, which finally caught Anne’s attention.

“Oh Marilla, let’s get you to bed,” Anne whispered, gently guiding Marilla up the stairs.

Marilla allowed herself to be led upstairs and finally drifted off to sleep in her bed.

 

The next day, Matthew and Marilla were enjoying a cup of tea after Anne had gone to school when they heard a knock. Marilla dusted of her skirt before opening the door to find a very obviously nervous Gilbert Blythe.

“Gilbert, come inside,” she said, hiding her surprise, “what can we do for you?”

“Well, I-, I’ve come to ask,” began Gilbert, voice unwavering “-I’ve come to ask for permission to court Anne.”

“About time”

 

Anne of course, said yes

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
